There are two entry points and they run the same scanner. Which one you want depends entirely on whether you need a PDF file at the end or just a record you can find later.
1. The Files scanner, when you want a PDF file
- Open Files and go to the folder you want the PDF in.
- Tap the three dot button at the top right.
- Tap Scan Documents.
- Hold the phone over the page. It shoots automatically when the edges lock on, or tap the shutter for manual.
- Shoot every page. Then tap Save.
You get a PDF, in that folder, with one page per scan. This is the shortest route to a file you can attach to an email, and it is the one most people never find because nobody looks for a scanner inside a file browser.
2. The Notes scanner, when it is for your own records
- Open Notes and start a note.
- Tap the camera icon above the keyboard.
- Tap Scan Documents.
- Shoot the pages, then Save.
The scan lives inside the note, which is genuinely useful: it is searchable by the note's text, it syncs, and you can write around it. To get a PDF out, tap the scan, then share, then Save to Files.
Scanner or camera: a real difference
| Scan Documents | A plain photo | |
|---|---|---|
| Perspective corrected | Yes, page comes out rectangular | No, it stays a trapezoid |
| Cropped to the page | Yes | No, your table is in the shot |
| Contrast normalised | Yes, shadows evened out | No |
| Multi page | Built in | You merge them yourself |
| File size per page | Small, a few hundred KB | 2 to 5 MB |
| Right for a photograph of a person | No | Yes |
| Right for a receipt or a form | Yes | Only if you have to |
The rule is about whether the subject has a rectangular edge. A page, a receipt, a contract, a whiteboard: use the scanner. A photograph, a screenshot, an object, a painting: use the camera or the photos you already have, and turn them into a PDF with the converter.
Getting a clean scan
Light from the side, not from above. Overhead light puts your own shadow across the page. A window to one side is the best light there is for this.
Contrast against the surface. The edge detection finds the boundary between the page and what is behind it. White paper on a white table gives it nothing to work with. A dark surface makes it lock on instantly.
Pick the right filter. Tap the three circles icon during the scan. Colour is the default and suits most things. Black and White is aggressive and correct for printed text you want small. Photo turns the processing off, which you want for anything with a signature, a stamp, a coloured highlight or a photograph on the page.
Fix the crop before saving. After each shot the corner handles are draggable. Automatic detection is good, not perfect, and it is much easier to nudge a corner now than to fix the page later.
Pulling the text out
iOS runs Live Text over scans automatically. Open the scan and long press a word: the selection handles appear and you can copy the text like any other text.
What that does not do is put a text layer inside the PDF. If you send the file to someone, their PDF reader will search it and find nothing, because as far as the file is concerned each page is a picture. For a genuinely searchable PDF you need OCR software, and nothing built into iOS does it.
When it goes wrong
It will not lock onto the page
Put something dark behind the paper and turn on more light. If it still fights you, tap the shutter to shoot manually and drag the corners yourself.
The scan is washed out or the highlighter has vanished
You are on the Colour or Black and White filter. Switch to Photo, which turns the contrast processing off entirely.
The pages are in the wrong order
Inside the scan preview, tap a page and use Retake or delete it, then shoot again in place. Reordering after saving means opening the PDF in an app that edits pages, which is more work than rescanning one sheet.
The PDF is bigger than expected
The Photo filter keeps far more data than the document filters. If size matters and the page is printed black text, Black and White will produce a file several times smaller.